Need help on choosing a BD player

[jc480]

Trying to figure out a direction on my TV & BD player. I've abandoned the idea of an LCD unit w/brand matching BDP and have decided to go the plasma route.

So...Panny Viera (which BDP) or Pioneer Kuro (which BDP) or Vizio (which 3rd party BDP).

Now...the thing that is really confusing me are the on-board capabilities of the BD player...specifically with audio decoding etc etc. I have a Denon 2300 series on order that has pretty advanced audio capabilities. So I'm unsure that having them in a BD player is pointless? Do I need DTS or whatever in both the BD player and an advanced receiver?

Anyway...I can't wait until April or w/e when new models are coming out as my home theater is under construction...looking to buy in the next week or so....

Can I get some recommendations?

[Eagle_23]

PS3 is still the best. Will do everything you could want.

[Frag]

It depends on your budget really. If money is no object and you are going with the Kuro, why not stick with a Pioneer BDP as well? They perform fantasticly and would look great with the rest of the pieces in your HT.

If you are on a lower budget then go with the Panny plasma and get the Panny 55 or the Samsung 2500/2550 as they are both great players.

Stay as far away from the Vizio plasma as you can as they are complete junk.

[joegs300]

PS3 +1

[CameronW]

Sony Playstation 3...

[jc480]

I don't understand the choice of PS/3...will this upscale old DVDs? old HD DVDs?

I have this going to a 7.1 audio system that I spent some bucks on the speakers and into a Denon 2308 receiver.

Isn't a PS3 pretty bare bones compared to a BDP-S550 or Panasonic units? Codecs?

[scweb13]

All BD players upscale DVD.

If you play video games or even think you might in the future, the PS3 is a good choice. It can't bitstream the HD codecs to your AVR but it does decode them internally and sends them PCM via HDMI. With the PS3, you will also need to buy a Bluetooth remote or get some kind of accessory to use an IR remote or universal remote.

If you just want to use it to watch movies, there are some good players now that are significantly cheaper than the PS3 and some that cost about the same or more. Most if not all new standalone BD players bitstream the HD codecs to the AVR and let the AVR decode them. A lot of people prefer this because then they can see "TrueHD" and "DTS-HD MA" displayed on the AVR.

I have a PS3 & a Panasonic BD35, and prefer the Panasonic. Others might have different opinions but thats just mine.

[jc480]

Thanks Schweb. So codecs, upscaling etc that alot of BD players promote aren't necessary if you have an AVR? especially one that supports HDMI?

So...I would stream raw data to the AVR which then does all the processing and forwards the signal on to the TV.

This wouldn't impact the quality of the audio as the audio decoding will all be done at the AVR.

Yes?

[bootman]

Originally Posted by jc480

Thanks Schweb. So codecs, upscaling etc that alot of BD players promote aren't necessary if you have an AVR? especially one that supports HDMI?

If your AVR has excellent video capabilities, then yes.
Some do have better video upconverting and deinterlacing than some of the players, but most midrange units don't.
(if you wind up with a Kuro, that set has very good scaling built in)

The only real downside to having the AVR decode HD audio is that if you engage any 2nd audio tracks, you can't get a HD bitstream at the same time.
Only an issue with supplemental materials played at the same time that the movie is playing. (director's comments, etc)

One downside of having decoding done at the player is that some AVRs do not support 7.1 PCM. So you wind up with 5.1 at the AVR. Some older AVRs also do not post process PCM. (THX EQ, DD ES, PIIx, etc) It gets treated at a digital version of direct mode. These issues however should be resolved with the newer models out.

[jc480]

Denon AVR-2309CI

100 watts per channel x 7 channels
Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby Digital Surround EX, Dolby Pro Logic IIx decoding
DTS-HD Master Audio, DTS ES 6.1 Discrete, DTS ES 6.1 Matrix, DTS Neo:6 decoding
HDMI v1.3a processing and switching (4 inputs, 1 output), supports 1080p, Deep Color, xvYCC, CEC functions
Faroudja DCDi video processing and up-conversion up to 1080p
Audyssey MultEQ in-room acoustic correction system
Audyssey Dynamic Volume automatic volume-leveling system
Audyssey Dynamic EQ automatic tonal balance adjustment system
Enhanced On Screen Display with icon-menu system and screen saver

If I use a Panasonic TV, do I want a Panny BD player or a Sony PS3? Figure I might as well get specific

Thanks!

[bootman]

Originally Posted by jc480

Denon AVR-2309CI

100 watts per channel x 7 channels
Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby Digital Surround EX, Dolby Pro Logic IIx decoding
DTS-HD Master Audio, DTS ES 6.1 Discrete, DTS ES 6.1 Matrix, DTS Neo:6 decoding
HDMI v1.3a processing and switching (4 inputs, 1 output), supports 1080p, Deep Color, xvYCC, CEC functions
Faroudja DCDi video processing and up-conversion up to 1080p
Audyssey MultEQ in-room acoustic correction system
Audyssey Dynamic Volume automatic volume-leveling system
Audyssey Dynamic EQ automatic tonal balance adjustment system
Enhanced On Screen Display with icon-menu system and screen saver

If I use a Panasonic TV, do I want a Panny BD player or a Sony PS3? Figure I might as well get specific

Thanks!

I would say a Panasonic BD-35 but they are becoming harder to find.
It will do everything you need.

[Thundarr]

Samsung 2550. With latest update it can decode DTS HD as well as Dolby HD. It does a a great job of making regular DVD's look like almost Blu ray.

[jc480]

Thanks for ALL of the responses. Please forgive my ignorance but I guess I'm missing something.

The receiver "decodes"? or "plays"? DTS yet I need my BD player to do this as well?

As a layperson, it sounds like I'm paying for DTS capability in a BD player and paying for it again in the receiver.

Obviously I'm missing something here. I've been reading up on these electronics but I seem to be not catching on where the capabilities of the BD player interact with the capabilities of the receiver.

[bhampton]

DTS is like that.... They license capabilities to as much hardware as they can. It's just business.

I went with the PS3 which decodes all the formats and outputs them as PCM then I went with a AVR that handled PCM via HDMI and I was all set.

If you are the person who needs the AVR to say DTS MA on the faceplate then that path won't work for you. You'll have to find a player that bit streams your formats and get an AVR that will decode those formats.

=Brian